Disposable salt cellar



Nov. 30, 1965 N. ZWIEBEL ETAL 3,220,614

DISPOSABLE SALT CELLAR Filed Jan. 21, 1964 NORMAN ZWIEBEL ELLIS NEWMAN WILLIAMPRICE INVENTORS.

ATTORNEY United States Patent @ffrce 3,220,614 Patented Nov. 30, 1965 a corporation of New York Filed Jan. 21, 1964, Ser. No. 339,219 4 Claims. (Cl. 222196.1)

This invention relates to shakers for powdered material and, in particular, to a disposable salt cellar comprising a thin-walled hollow body of semi-rigid material for use by hospitals, restaurants, railroads and airlines.

Disposable salt cellers are commonly used in the service of food on railroads and airlines together with other disposable package items, such as butter, jelly, sugar, cream receptacles and the like. One type of salt cellar which has found particular use is an envelope-like flexible package of substantially rectangular shape comprising a group of adjacently arranged longitudinal compartments sealed from each other along their common dimension. The package is creased or incipiently perforated along a line near the top thereof across said compartments and opened by merely applying a bending force at the creased or perforated line to provide access to the contents of the package.

However, the package of the foregoing type has its disadvantages in that it is difficult to manipulate it in spreading its contents over a dish of food. Generally, the condiment contained therein immediately falls out of the compartments onto a portion of the food and usually renders that portion unpalatable because of the relatively high concentration of condiment inadvertently added to it.

It is thus an object of the invention to provide a disposable package of extremely simple and inexpensive structure.

Another object is to provide a salt cellar of semi-rigid thin-walled material having all the advantages of the conventional salt cellar but which is inexpensive and disposable. I

These and other objects will more clearly appear when taken in conjunction with the following disclosure and the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view in elevation showing one embodiment of the invention comprising a substantially cylindrical package tapered slightly as a truncated cone;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the package showing a tabbed perforation closure bonded to the cover;

FIG. 3 is a cross section of the package taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 4 is another cross section of the package taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1 looking down into the package; and

FIG. 5 is an exploded view in three dimensions showing the various elements employed in producing the novel package provided by the invention.

Stating it broadly, our invention comprises a disposable salt cellar comprising a hollow thin-walled body of semi-rigid material closed at one end, a laterally extending flange peripherally surrounding the opposite end, and a perforated flexible cover adhesively connected to the opposite end along the marginal edge of the flange. The term salt cellar as employed herein is meant to cover any container or receptacle adapted to hold a powdered ingredient, such as condiments, and the like.

The disposable salt cellar may be made of any thinwalled material such as a paper product, a metal foil such as aluminum, or a synthetic material such as thermoplastic sheeting or strip, for example cellulose acetate, polyvinyl chloride and polystyrene, or the like. Of course, it will be appreciated that a combination of materials may be employed. For example, the body of the salt cellar, including the flange laterally integral therewith, may be vacuum-formed in a die from thin polystyrene sheeting, and the perforated cover adhesively bonded to the top of the receptacle along the marginal edge of the flange may comprise a thin disc of aluminum foil, of paper, or of any other flexible material. We prefer to use thin-walled semi-rigid material for the body of the receptacle and paper for the perforated cover as this combination enables the easy Withdrawal of the powdered ingredient therein uniformly through the perforations by removal of the tabbed performation closure.

A preferred embodiment of the salt cellar is shown in the drawing as comprising main body portion 1 with the wall formed with flutes or corrugations 2 which run from the top to the bottom of the receptacle. The main body is substantially cylindrical in shape but is preferably tapered as an inverted truncated cone. The top is provided with a cover 3 and a superimposed tabbed perforation closure 4 bonded to each other with the cover in turn bonded to the marginal edge 5 of laterally extending flange 6.

Preferably, the receptacle is made of polystyrene. This plastic is colorless, odorless and tasteless. In forming the receptacle, the flange 6 is formed integrally with it (note FIG. 3). The flange is important as it enables the use of very thin walls (e.g. 0.005 to 0.030) while assuring a rigid receptacle. Generally, for this purpose, the outer diameter of the flange will vary from 1.2 to 1.6 times the diameter of the body as determined at the point where the flange merges with the body. The assembling of the salt cellar of the invention is shown in the exploded view of FIG. 5. The tab is shown as having a pleated free end portion 4a which is adapted to be grasped by the fingers.

Referring to FIG. 2, which is a top view of FIG. 1, perforations 7 are shown concealed by tab 4 superimposed thereover, the tab being partially broken away. FIG. 4 which is a cross section taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1, shows the fluted circular wall of the receptacle, with the flutes extending substantially to the bottom 8 of the receptacle.

Referring to FIG. 3, a typical size of the receptacle would be one having a height H of about one inch, a diameter W at the flange portion of about five-eighths of an inch, a flange diameter F of about seven-eighths of an inch, and a diameter B at the bottom of about seven-sixteenths of an inch. In the embodiment illustrated, the ratio of the diameter F of the flange to W of the container is about 1.4 which falls within the range of about 1.2 to 1.6 recited hereinbefore. The foregoing size is merely illustrative, it being understood that the receptacle may be provided in various sizes, miniature sizes being preferred.

The main body of the container is produced by a thermo-formirng operation wherein a flat sheet of polystyrene or other thermoplastic material is die formed to produce a container, the depth of which ranges from about 1 /2 to 1% greater than the inner diameter of the opening of the die cavity in which the container is formed. Assuming the starting sheet has a thickness of about 0.02 inch, the thickness of the laterally extending flange Will be about 0.02 inch, with the thickness of the container wall ranging from about 0.005 to 0.01. Generally speaking, the thickness of the container may range from about 25% to 50% of the thickness of the flange.

In order to insure controlled withdrawal of salt or other condiment from the salt cellar, the size of the perforations should be sufficient to retain the salt within the receptacle when it is held upside down, but yet allow the salt to come out when the receptacle is shaken. For

this purpose, the perforation should be of such a size as to range from above the size of the individual grain of the condiment to about three times the size. By utilizing thin semi-rigid material in the overall structure of the receptacle, the withdrawal of the condiment can be further controlled by slightly flexing the wall or walls of the container.

It is apparent from the foregoing that a novel disposable salt cellar is provided having thin walls supported substantially rigidly by means of a laterally extending flange integral with the periphery of the receptacle. The perforated cover is heat sealed to the marginal edge of the flange and a tab covering the perforations is sealed to the cover, the perforations being of such a size as to control the flow of the condiment from the receptacle. The receptacle is economical to make by injection or vacuum-forming from opaque or transparent thermoplastic material, such as polystyrene, and is thus disposable.

While the present invention has been described in conjunction With preferred embodiments, it is to be understood th at modifications and variations may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as those skilled in the art will readily understand. Such modifications and variations are considered to be within the purview and scope of the invention and the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A disposable salt cellar comprising a hollow thinwalled body of semi-rigid material closed at one end, a laterally extending flange integral with and peripherally surrounding the opposite end, a cover having perforations therein, said cover being bonded to said opposite end along the flange thereof, said perforations being of such size a to retain powdered ingredient within the salt cellar when inverted and to allow the discharge of said ingredient when the salt cellar is shaken, and a tab perforation closure bonded to said cover.

2. The disposable salt cellar of claim 1 wherein the flange laterally extends to a diameter ranging from about 1.2 to 1.6 times the diameter of the salt cellar determined at the point where the flange merges therewith.

3. A disposable salt cellar comprising a hollow thin walled body of semi-rigid thermoplastic material closed at one end, a flange of said material integral with and peripherally surrounding the opposite end and extending laterally therefrom, said flange extending to a diameter of about 1.2 to 1.6 times the diameter of the salt cellar determined at the region of the container where the flange merges therewith, the thickness of the wall of the container extending downwardly from the flange being less than that of the flange and ranging from about 25% to of the flange thickness, 2. cover having perforations therein, said cover being bonded to the container along the flange thereof, said perforations being of such size as to retain powdered ingredient within the salt cellar when inverted but which will allow the discharge of the ingredient when the salt cellar is shaken, and a tab perforation closure bonded to said cover.

4. The disposable salt cellar of claim 3 wherein the thermoplastic semi-rigid material is polystyrene and wherein the thin wall of the receptacle is fluted.

- References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,854,458 4/1932 Quincy et a1 2151.5 2,776,787 1/1957 Nicol 222565 X 2,878,967 3/1959 Duke 222-565 X 2,898,003 8/1959 Wilson et al. 222541 X 3,045,887 7/1962 Caine 2151.5 X 3,063,602 11/ 1962 Anderson 222480 3,154,225 10/1964 Wadlinger et al. 22256S X LOUIS J. DEMBO, Primary Examiner.

EVERETT W. KIRBY, Examiner. 

1. A DISPOSABLE SALT CELLAR COMPRISING A HOLLOW THINWALLED BODY OF SEMI-RIGID MATERIAL CLOSED AT ONE END, A LATERALLY EXTENDING FLANGE INTEGRAL WITH AND PERIPHERALLY SURROUNDING THE OPPOSITE END, A COVER HAVING PERFORATIONS THEREIN, SAID COVER BEING BONDED TO SAID OPPOSITE END ALONG THE FLANGE THEREOF, SAID PERFORATIONS BEING OF SUCH SIZE AS TO RETAIN POWDERED INGREDIENT WITHIN THE SALT CELLAR WHEN INVERTED AND TO ALLOW THE DISCHARGE OF SAID INGREDIENT WHEN THE SALT CELLAR IS SHAKEN, AND A TAB PERFORATION CLOSURE BONDED TO SAID COVER. 